Protecting Kyiv's Heritage: An Urban Center Rebuilding Itself in the Shadow of Conflict.

Lesia Danylenko showed off with satisfaction her newly installed front door. The restoration team had playfully nicknamed its ornate transom window the “pastry”, a lighthearted tribute to its arched shape. “In my opinion it’s more of a peafowl,” she remarked, gazing at its tree limb-inspired details. The refurbishment initiative at one of Kyiv’s turn-of-the-century art nouveau houses was made possible by residents, who marked the occasion with several neighbourhood pavement parties.

It was also an expression of resistance against a foreign power, she elaborated: “We strive to live like ordinary people regardless of the war. It’s about organizing our life in the best possible way. Fear does not drive us of living in Ukraine. I could have left, relocating to a foreign land. Conversely, I’m here. The new entrance shows our commitment to our homeland.”

“Our aim is to live like ordinary people despite the war. It’s about shaping our life in the most positive way.”

Protecting Kyiv’s built legacy could be considered paradoxical at a period when missile strikes frequently hit the capital, causing death and destruction. Since the start of the current year, aerial raids have been significantly intensified. After each assault, workers cover blown-out windows with plywood and try, where possible, to save residential buildings.

Amid the Conflict, a Battle for Beauty

Despite the violence, a collective of activists has been working to save the city’s deteriorating mansions, built in a whimsical style known as Ukrainian modernism. Danylenko’s house is in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. It was built in 1906 and was initially the home of a affluent fur dealer. Its exterior is decorated with horse chestnut leaves and intricate camomile flowers.

“These structures stand as symbols of Kyiv. These properties are quite rare nowadays,” Danylenko noted. The residence was designed by a designer of Central European origin. Several other buildings close by exhibit analogous art nouveau features, including an irregular shape – with a pointed turret on one side and a small tower on the other. One much-loved house in the area features two forlorn white stucco cats, as well as owls, masks and a imp.

Several Threats to History

But external attacks is only one threat. Preservation campaigners say they face unprincipled developers who knock down protected buildings, unethical officials and a administrative body unconcerned or opposed to the city’s vast architectural history. The harsh winter climate presents another challenge.

“Kyiv is a city where money wins. We don’t have substantive political will to save our heritage,” said Dmytro Perov, an activist. He alleged the city’s mayor was closely associated with many of the developers who flatten important houses. Perov stated that the vision for the capital comes straight out of a previous decade. The mayor has refuted these claims, attributing them from political rivals.

Perov said many of the community-oriented activists who once championed older properties were now serving in the military or had been fallen. The lengthy conflict meant that the entire society was facing monetary strain, he added, including judicial figures who mysteriously ruled in favour of dubious new-build schemes. “The longer this goes on the more we see degradation of our society and state bodies,” he argued.

Destruction and Neglect

One glaring demolition site is in the waterside Podil neighbourhood. The street was lined with classical 19th-century houses. A developer who acquired the plot had committed to preserve its attractive brick facade. A day after the 2022 invasion, diggers tore it down. Recently, a crane prepared foundations for a new retail and office development, observed by a surly security guard.

Anatolii Pohorily, a heritage supporter, said there was little optimism for the remaining turquoise-painted houses on the site. Sometimes developers destroyed old properties while stating they were doing “archaeological research”, he said. A previous regime also wrought immense damage on the capital, redesigning its central boulevard after the second world war so it could allow for official processions.

Carrying the Torch

One of Kyiv’s most renowned defenders of historic buildings, a tour guide and blogger, was killed in 2022 while engaged in the frontline. His colleague Nelli Chudna said she and other volunteers were persevering in his crucial preservation work. There were initially 3,500 brick-built mansions in Kyiv, many built for the city’s prosperous business magnates. Only 80 of their authentic doors remain, she said.

“It wasn’t foreign rockets that destroyed them. It was us,” she admitted sadly. “The war could last another 20 years. If we don’t defend architecture now nothing will be left,” she emphasized. Chudna recently helped to restore a characterful creeper-covered house built in 1910, which functions as the headquarters of her cultural organization and doubles as a film set and museum. The property has a new red door and original-style railings; inside is a vintage sanitary facility and antique mirrors.

“The war could continue for another 20 years. If we neglect architecture now little will be left.”

The building’s tenant, artist Yurii Pikul, described his home as “very cool and a little bit cold”. Why do many citizens not value the past? “Regrettably they are without education and taste. It’s all about business. We are striving as a country to go to the west. But we are still some distance away from such cultural awareness,” he said. Previous ways of thinking remained, with people hesitant to take personal responsibility for their architectural setting, he added.

Therapy in Action

Some buildings are collapsing because of bureaucratic indifference. Chudna indicated a once-magical villa concealed behind a modern hospital. Its roof had caved in; pigeons roosted among its broken windows; refuse lay under a fairytale tower. “Often we lose the battle,” she conceded. “Restoration is a coping mechanism for us. We are attempting to save all this history and aesthetic value.”

In the face of war and commercial interests, these volunteers continue their work, one building at a time, stating that to preserve a city’s identity, you must first cherish its stones.